Just watched S4 - New Moon Rising

[rabid1st]

Anyone who thinks S5 of Angel was great or S7 of Buffy was the best we could expect...needs to go watch New Moon Rising...right now!

I watched it today...for the first time since S7...I wanted to pick up a little Willow/Tara vibe and I remembered NMR was good...but I never liked Riley or for that matter S4.

But I swear to you...I could not speed through one second of this eppy. I was riveted.

And in the end...when Oz and Willow said goodbye "One day I'll turn the corner in Istanbul..." This was the quintessential break-up. It ended not with cheap theatrics or strum and drang emotions but with deep respect for all concerned and genuine pathos. I felt for Oz and Willow. My heart overflowed with sympathy. And yet, I also had the lift of the heart for Tara, patiently waiting and being rewarded.

But there was so much more to love about this eppy. I cheered a bit when Riley came for Oz and when he got all puffy and decked the colonel with the "No, Sir, I'm an anarchist!" I liked the subtle way they dealt with the homophobic/bigot issue of demons and gays as Buffy has trouble adjusting to the NEW WILL...and finds forgiveness in her heart for Riley. I loved the line that was drawn showing the Initiative as true evil. It was a modern fascist concentration camp, as Oz is left naked and bruised in a stark cell. Comparing his cell to the one Riley is given, a cell with a bed and a toilet...visually underlined the inhumanity of it all.

S4 isn't my favorite season...but as Tara blew out that candle I thought...THIS IS WHAT BtVS ONCE WAS...THIS IS WHY I LOVED IT! And I teared up a bit more...just out of gratitude for something as well written as New Moon Rising existing in the world. God the show was special in its day! GO WATCH NOW!

Comments

[xlostangelx.livejournal.com]

I think you may have convinced me to dig out my season 4 DVDs and watch a few episodes.

Over the years I've come to appreciate season 4 more. It still lacks something and is disappointing as a whole, but the indivudual episodes are some of the best in the series.

Do...go watch...I'll wait here...

[rabid1st.livejournal.com]

...I, too, remember S4 as lacking. But so far I have watched This Year's Girl, Who Are You (SARAH...SARAH...SARAH! She is so amazing in that eppy...when she flips the lipstick and says "burn it"...when she takes on Spike...when she delights in tormenting Tara and when she has the breakdowns...with Riley and later in the church...the stuff with the mirror...DAMN! Evil Buffy would have been good...shame they didn't just unleash her in S6).

Then, I watched Superstar and New Moon Rising. NMR is definitely the best for total balance on everyone...even Spike has wonderful moments. I love his Initiative outfit. And the flirting with Buffy with the slide of his hand along the torso. I also liked his backhanded compliment of her with Adam...I found myself thinking about him NOT knowing Faith was in Buffy's body...and also it was amazing how clearly and early the change from Riley to Spike was signaled as Buffy and Spike were interacting on another level in the one-on-one dealings and yet the writers cloak it all in her PAST with ANGEL.

Underrated

[allyv.livejournal.com]

Ah, see, I ADORE season four. It's my second favorite season, behind season five. Lots of my very favorite episodes are from season four and there's that stretch of episodes that are possibly three of the finest episodes of any television show in a row ever (Pangs, Something Blue, Hush). Also some truly great standalone eps and I didn't even hate Riley in season four. No, it didn't have this perfect arc, but it had some brilliant episodes and it was the last time I still loved every Scoobie and cared about them and cried with them. After season four I loved Spike, Tara, Anya, and Dawn more than the core four, so I remember it fondly for my Scoobie love if for nothing else.

This is true...they were ALL lovable...

[rabid1st.livejournal.com]

...and yes...the arc thing was what bothered me I think...the fact that I saw it go bad when Maggie was killed and we had only Adam and the Initiative left...but even then...it wasn't THAT bad...I like the way Buffy shows the big time government guys who's boss and the way the gang pulls together to defeat Adam. I think if they hadn't wasted Maggie and had those zombies I would have been okay with it.

The gang was just great. I had forgotten how marvelous...how seamlessly vivacious it all was...and how much more the painful stuff hurt when it was set against a fluffy backdrop. We had hope back then...we weren't just numb to it all.

Season 5 and Season 2 still my faves because I like arc...but S4 has now moved into the #3 spot...taking S6 down to a tie with S3 (both marvelous but flawed by the focus on one or two themes)...then it's S1, S7 (only because there is really no excuse for S7...like there was for S1).